VOLUNTEERS HAVE MADE OVER 500 SCRUBS AND 4,000 MASKS
VOLUNTEERS HAVE MADE OVER 500 SCRUBS AND 4,000 FACE MASKS FOR FRONTLINE WORKERS IN SLIGO AND FURTHER AFIELD
WHEN the country went into lockdown back in March one woman knew she was going to be busy.
Mary Durcan who owns The Craft and Sewing Basket on Ballast Quay in Sligo was watching the news unfold and realised straight away that demand for scrubs and mask making material would be high.
Mary decided she would start making scrubs and masks for local frontline workers and in no time was getting requests from clinician and staff at SUH who were facing a three to five week waiting time for deliveries from their regular scrubs suppliers – that’s if they could order scrubs at all.
Within days of starting her free voluntary service Mary was overwhelmed by the demand and enlisted the help of staff, friends and sewing enthusiasts in North Sligo, Anne Feehily who works in the community sector came on board to help with coordinating the volunteers.
Local Councillor Marie Casserly volunteered to collect and drop off supplies while Orsi Strekovanyec and Paula O’Connor volunteered as pattern cutters and in a blink North West Sews was born.
Within days, the voluntary community group had grown to 50 members, all sewing enthusiasts working from home and spread across counties Sligo, Leitrim, Donegal and Roscommon.
Local graphic design company Darragh Kerrigan Creative provided free logo design to the group and helped set up the groups social media presence.
When the group ran out of fabric local businesses stepped in to donate much needed supplies.
With the help of generous donation from Nice Price in Wine Street, Sligo, Plan 4 in Union Street, The Sligo Freemasons, Moffitt’s of O Connell Street and Studio Donegal in Kilcarr the sewing volunteers were kept supplied and production continued.
As the demand for scrubs and masks continued to rise the group set up a GoFundMe page to help with purchasing fabric from wholesalers in the UK and Ireland.
To date almost €6,700 has been received in donations from people across the country.
The fund has enabled the group to make 500 sets of professional standard scrubs consisting of tunic style top and elasticated trousers and 4,000 face masks and they are still busy sewing to meet demand.
Feedback from people receiving the scrubs has been very positive with one nurse saying: “I am so happy with the quality and fit of your scrubs, thank you so much for the hard work. It’s such a positive feeling knowing that your volunteers have our back during this emergency, thank you.”
North West Sews scrubs have been delivered to Sligo University Hospital, nursing homes in Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo Mayo and Roscommon, community frontline workers, carers, home help, health professionals, primary care staff, pharmacists and many others across the region.
North West Sew’s masks have also been a fantastic success with over 4,000 given out free of charge to vulnerable groups, nursing homes, the Red Cross, families, community groups, meals-on-wheels, essential workers and people who are cocooning.
Gardaí across the region have supported the group’s efforts and have helped with logistics to provide deliveries of scrubs and masks when needed.
The volunteers received national recognition when Deputy Marian Harkin commended the work of North West Sews in the Dáil.
The volunteers are making a real difference to the needs of their community across the North West in a time of crisis to produce a thousand pieces of medical grade clothing and 4,000 facemasks in just over a month is a credit to the power of grassroots effort, skill and determination.
To donate please go to North West Sews Masks and Scrubs for frontline Workers on GoFundMe.
Meanwhile, a second yearHome Economics and Biology Student at St Angela’s College, Lauren Cawley has been making cotton facemasks for her aunt’s hospital in America and is now also making facemasks for Higgins Pharmacy on Teeling
Street, Sligo in aid of Northwest Hospice. Lauren’s aunt is a nurse and asked her to make them. She investigated three different designs and then made a batch and sent them to her.
She is one of the many St. Angela’s staff and students now making these which are selling for €10 in aid of the hospice.